Servants of the Living Forest (5 page)

They dodged each assault but were slowed, and through the cracking trees and raining blood, they could hear the black dog barking, hunting them, with the rest of the Community following after it still chanting and singing to the Three Oaks.

"We don't even know where we are!" Cameron sobbed. "We could be anywhere. What did they do to us, Joey? What's happening?"

Jocelyn didn't say anything, refusing to think about the clearing, any of it. She just kept going, powering across the uneven terrain and between the shifting trees while pulling Cameron with her.

Then they gasped and came to an abrupt halt, nearly running into Cameron's van. The vehicle was as awash as they were in crimson.

"Those idiots!" Jocelyn exclaimed. "We did it, Cammy! Quick, get in!"

Cameron hesitated, her gaze distant, and then, without a word, she took off, heading for the cabin.

"What are you doing?" Jocelyn shouted.

"I have to get our stuff!" she called back.

"What? Just leave it!"

"They'll find us!" Cameron shouted. "They'll get our names and our address, and they will come after us if I don't get our stuff, Joey!"

She reached into her pocket, took out her keys, and threw them to Jocelyn. Jocelyn dropped them and had to collect them from the grass and sticky red mud. When she looked up, Cameron had disappeared into the shadows ahead.

Jocelyn reached to her shoulders then but stopped as an icy chill surged down her spine. It only occurred to her now that she wasn't wearing her pack. The Community had taken their things while they were asleep, and she wasn't sure if they had written their names on anything they'd packed inside.

She didn't know what to say, or if there was anything to say after this night, and chose to ignore it, to put it behind her with everything else, where it was silenced, if only for now. She ran around the front of the van, jumped inside, and jammed the key into the ignition.

"Hurry up, babe."

Cameron shivered, afraid as she felt her way through the dark, until finally she touched the cabin. It was only this morning, she realized, that they were having a wonderful breakfast together, the day full of sunshine and hope. And Sancho was there.

She threw open the door. Inside, it was as black as a void. She entered cautiously, assured, at least, that there would not be any furniture in her way.

And with her first step, she heard a crunch.

The room erupted with chattering and clicking, and Cameron shrank. The cabin was full of insects! She swallowed, stifling her terror, and made her way to the table one step at a time. She soon found the bag, standing where they had left it, and started toward the door when, suddenly, the entire dwelling shifted. She fell to the floor. The beetles swarmed over her, and she screamed, quickly scrambled to her feet and ran from the cabin, crying and swatting at the giant insects.

Bright lights shined against her face, and she stopped and squinted through her tears.

Jocelyn revved the engine. Cameron glanced back. The earth rippled under the cabin, bringing it closer to the reaching trees.

"Get in already!" Jocelyn shouted.

Cameron jolted and got into the passenger seat. Jocelyn turned the van, ready to drive off, when a massive branch slammed against the ground, with a boom like an explosion, splashing the pools of blood.

They screamed, and Jocelyn drove around it.

As they sped down the forest path, sliding and wavering in the mud, the trees slithered toward them, closing in on the vehicle like a wall, scraping at its sides with a deafening shriek.

And then, they burst onto the desolate county road, straightening out on the smooth pavement, returning to the quiet and calm of the real world.

The van thrummed as Jocelyn drove, gripping the wheel. After a while, their shaking ended and they slouched and slumped in their seats, too exhausted to stay upright or feel anything more.

They traded places when they stopped to refuel an hour later, under the bright suburban lights. Cameron cleaned the blood from her face with a shirt from their bag and put on another. The shadows and the night hid the rest.

For the rest of the drive, they did not say another word to each other.

Jocelyn looked in the mirror and sighed. It had been weeks since she had gone out or worn makeup or put on anything bright, or even smiled, and still she was dissatisfied.

She smoothed her gray sweater and light blue leggings, unable to figure out what more had to be done to make things right. She had stripped away all that she was until she no longer resembled herself.

Her small apartment, awash in pale daylight, was bare, except for a few furnishings. She had left without a word, and when Cameron called, would not answer the phone. She did not have any answers to give. Eventually, the phone stopped ringing.

She knew she had to be alone, to get everything clean and straight, to make sense of the chaos of her life. So far, she had found nothing. A mote of dust landed on the gleaming coffee table. She wiped it away, and returned to sitting at the corner of her couch, holding herself.

The hours passed in silence, marked by the dimming light, until there was a knock at the door. She got up, and only reluctantly opened it.

Cameron stood on the other side. She wore dark makeup and a neon pink top and ragged jeans, and her chestnut hair was a tousled mess. Despite her newly found vibrancy, she had the same listless demeanor as Jocelyn.

"Hi, Joey," she said. She smiled crookedly, fidgeted. "How are you?"

Jocelyn nodded. "I'm fine," she said, without emotion. "You?"

"Good."

They stood there, looking at each other, only inches apart, but distanced by leagues from their shared experience.

"Want to come in?" Jocelyn asked.

"Yeah, thanks." Cameron stepped inside, and Jocelyn carefully closed the door, checking twice that it was properly locked. "So. What have you been up to?" Cameron asked, hands in her pockets.

"Nothing, really," Jocelyn said. "My stepdad's still mad at me. He thinks we trashed the cabin. I never told him what happened."

"I haven't told anyone either," Cameron said. "I'm still not sure what happened to us. But I, um, I really could have used your help figuring it out."

Jocelyn rolled her eyes. "I don't want to deal with it, okay? Something was stolen from us, and it's my fault, I know!" she shouted. "I wanted it. I'm the one who got us into that nightmare. I don't need you to remind me."

"I don't blame you for what happened!" Cameron pleaded. "Joey. I need you. I see you every minute of every day. And when I realize you're not really there, it breaks my heart. Why does it have to be this way? Why can't we be together, the way I know, deep down, we're supposed to be? Please! I can't live without you! Whatever's wrong, we can deal with it together."

Jocelyn breathed hard, her hands in tight fists as she glared toward the floor. "I just want to forget about it, all of it. Everything before that night."

The words struck Cameron painfully, and tears welled in her eyes.

"Fine. Then, tell me to go away," she said. "Tell me you don't need me, and I'll leave and never bother you again. You can't just disappear, though. You're going to have to say it to my face this time."

She waited, each passing second stabbing sharply, but Jocelyn still did not look up and would not say anything to her. And defeated, Cameron nodded and began to walk away, uncertain about her future.

"I need you," Jocelyn said, and she began to cry. "Okay? I need you!" She ran to Cameron then, and they embraced. "Just, tell me it didn't happen," Jocelyn said, weeping.

"It did happen," Cameron said. "But, we have each other. And together, we can survive anything. I know it."

They kissed and pressed against each other, and for the first time since that night, felt truly safe.

Brandon L. Summers loves to write sci-fi and horror stories. When he’s not doing that, he’s watching obscure movies. During the day, he is a reporter for a daily newspaper in Iowa.